Illustration from 'Histoire de l'oeil' by Georges Bataille (1897-1962), writing as Lord Auch, Seville: 1940,...

One of 12 engraved plates from a first edition inscribed by Bataille, 'à Gilles de Rais, que je m'excuse d'avoir bleui'. Bataille inscribed his book, facetiously, to Gilles de Rais (1405-1440), companion-in-arms of Joan of Arc, and later executed as a serial killer. In later life Bataille wrote about Rais's trial, and his inscription ['bleui'] may refer to the belief that Charles Perrault based his Barbebleu on Gilles de Rais. AE and ABPC record no other copy inscribed by Bataille at auction. Number 28 of 50 copies issued with a duplicate suite of print, from an edition of 199 copies only. Histoire de l'oeil is the first work illustrated with Bellmer prints.